Native name: Uaigh | |
|---|---|
 | |
  Owey Island | |
| Geography | |
| Location | Atlantic Ocean |
| Coordinates | 55°03′17″N8°27′03″W / 55.0547°N 8.4508°W |
| Area | 1.214 km2 (0.469 sq mi) |
| Highest elevation | 102 m (335 ft) |
| Highest point | Moylemore |
| Administration | |
Ireland | |
| Province | Ulster |
| County | Donegal |
| Demographics | |
| Population | 0 (lived in seasonally) (2021) |
Owey Island (Irish : Uaigh, meaning 'Cave' [1] [2] ) is an island off the coast of west County Donegal, Ireland.
The island is around 120 hectares (300 acres) [3] in area. It lies off the Donegal coast near Kincasslagh. [2] The island's highest hill, Moylemore, has a summit elevation of 102 m. [4] The buildings of the island are located on its southern part, the northern part being rocky and exposed to winds. On Owey there is no mains electricity or public water supply.
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| Source: Central Statistics Office. "CNA17: Population by Off Shore Island, Sex and Year". CSO.ie. Retrieved 12 October 2016. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The table reports data taken from Discover the Islands of Ireland (Alex Ritsema, Collins Press, 1999) and the Census of Ireland. Owey Island was full-time inhabited up to the mid 1970s. Later on it only had part-time residents, mainly at summer. Most of them own old cottages inherited by ancestors who used to permanently live in the island.
Plenty of fish in the waters surrounding the island and the land that, fertilized with seaweed, was suitable for growing vegetables, allowed a simple lifestyle to more than 100 people. Turf was used to heat the homes; some of the islanders used it also to heat the equipment to produce single malt and liquors. [2]
In the olden days Owey had a post office and a school, which closed in 1971; its remains are still there. It had just one teacher in charge of the primary education of all ages, while for their secondary education children had to be sent to the mainland.
County Donegal is a county of Ireland in the province of Ulster and in the Northern and Western Region. It is named after the town of Donegal in the south of the county. It has also been known as County Tyrconnell or Tirconaill, after the historic territory. Donegal County Council is the local council and Lifford is the county town.
A Gaeltacht is a district of Ireland, either individually or collectively, where the Irish government recognises that the Irish language is the predominant vernacular, or language of the home. The Gaeltacht districts were first officially recognised during the 1920s in the early years of the Irish Free State, following the Gaelic revival, as part of a government policy aimed at restoring the Irish language.
Ireland is an island in Northern Europe in the north Atlantic Ocean. The island, of up to around 480 km (300 mi) north-south, and 275 km (171 mi) east-west, lies near the western edge of the European continental shelf, part of the Eurasian Plate. Its main geographical features include low central plains surrounded by coastal mountains. The highest peak is Carrauntoohil, which is 1,039 metres (3,409 ft) above sea level. The western coastline is rugged, with many islands, peninsulas, headlands and bays, while the southern and northern coasts feature a smaller number of substantial sea inlets, such as Lough Foyle and Cork Harbour; no part of the land is more than around 110 km (68 mi) from the sea. It was administratively divided into 32 counties, gathered in 4 provinces, though current arrangements, especially in Northern Ireland, differ from this model. The island is almost bisected by the River Shannon, which at 360.5 km (224 mi) with a 102.1 km (63 mi) estuary is the longest river in Ireland and flows south from County Cavan in the province of Ulster to form the boundary between Connacht and Leinster, and later Munster, and meet the Atlantic just south and west of Limerick. There are a number of sizeable lakes along Ireland's rivers, of which Lough Neagh is the largest.
The vast majority of placenames in Ireland are anglicisations of Irish language names; that is, adaptations of the Irish names to English phonology and spelling. However, some names come directly from the English language, and a handful come from Old Norse and Scots. The study of placenames in Ireland unveils features of the country's history and geography and the development of the Irish language. The name of Ireland itself comes from the Irish name Éire, added to the Germanic word land. In mythology, Éire was an Irish goddess of the land and of sovereignty.
Inishowen is a peninsula in the north of County Donegal in Ireland. Inishowen is the largest peninsula on the island of Ireland.
Árainn Mhór is an island off the west coast of County Donegal in Ulster, the northern province in Ireland. Arranmore is the largest inhabited island of County Donegal, with a population of 478 in 2022, but has had a gradually falling native population since the 1990s. Its main settlement is Leabgarrow. The island is part of the Gaeltacht, with most of the inhabitants speaking Ulster Irish.
Malin Head is the most northerly point of mainland Ireland, located in the townland of Ardmalin on the Inishowen peninsula in County Donegal. The head's northernmost point is called Dunalderagh at latitude 55.38ºN. It is about 16 kilometres (10 mi) north of the village of Malin. The island of Inishtrahull is further north, about 10 km (6 mi) northeast of the headland. Malin Head gives its name to the Malin sea area. There is a weather station on the head, which is one of 22 such stations whose reports are broadcast as part of the BBC Shipping Forecast. A tower built in 1805 is on Altnadarrow, also known locally as the Tower Hill.
The Rosses is a traditional 'district' in the west of County Donegal in Ulster, the northern province in Ireland. The Rosses has a population of over 7,000 centred on the town of Dungloe, which acts as the educational, shopping and civic centre for the area. Defined by physical boundaries in the form of rivers, as well as history and language use, the area has a distinctive identity, separate from the rest of County Donegal. The extensive district lies between the parish and district of Gweedore to the north and the town of Glenties to the south. A large part of the Rosses is in the Gaeltacht, which means that Irish is the spoken language. The Rosses, Cloughaneely and Gweedore, known locally as "the three parishes", with 16,000 Irish speakers, together form a social and cultural region different from the rest of the county, with Gweedore serving as the main centre for socialising and industry. Gaeltacht an Láir is another Irish-speaking area.
Tory Island, or simply Tory, is an island 14.5 kilometres off the north-west coast of County Donegal, Ireland. It is officially known by its Irish name Toraigh, which, although spelled thus, is pronounced the same as the English version. It is the most remote inhabited island of Ireland. The name toraigh means "place of steep rocky heights".
Gweedore is a Gaeltacht (Irish-speaking) district and parish located on the Atlantic coast of County Donegal in the north-west of Ireland. Gweedore stretches some 26 kilometres (16 mi) from Glasserchoo and Bloody Foreland in the north to Crolly in the south and around 14 kilometres (9 mi) from Dunlewey in the east to Magheraclogher and Magheralosk in the west, and is sometimes described as one of Europe's most densely populated rural areas. It is the largest Irish-speaking parish in Ireland with a population of around 4,065, and is also the home of the northwest regional studios of the Irish-language radio service RTÉ Raidió na Gaeltachta, as well as an external campus of the University of Galway. Gweedore includes the settlements of Brinlack, Bunbeg, Derrybeg, Crolly and Dunlewey, and sits in the shade of County Donegal's highest peak, Errigal.
Inishtrahull is the most northerly island of Ireland. It has an area of 34 hectares and lies about ten kilometres northeast of Malin Head, County Donegal, and just over fifty kilometres southwest of the island of Orsay, in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. The most northerly landfall of Ireland, the Tor Beg rock, is another kilometre to the north. Inishtrahull is home to Ireland's northernmost lighthouse. The island had a resident community until 1929 and the lighthouse was staffed until 1987. Today it is uninhabited and has been designated a protected area due to its wildlife.
An Fál Carrach, sometimes called Na Crois Bhealaí, is a small Gaeltacht town and townland in the north-west of County Donegal in Ulster, the northern province in Ireland. The settlement is in the district and old parish of Cloughaneely.
Downings or Downies is a Gaeltacht village and townland on the Rosguill peninsula in County Donegal, Ireland. The village is on the shores of Sheephaven Bay on the north coast of Ireland.
Cruit Island is a small inhabited island in the Rosses district in the west of County Donegal in Ulster, the northern province in Ireland. It is linked to the mainland by a bridge.
Inch Island is in Lough Swilly, a sea lough in County Donegal on the northern coast of Ireland. Inch is also the name of the civil parish covering the island.
Inishmeane is a small island and a townland off the coast of Gweedore, County Donegal, Ireland and was once home to a vibrant fishing community. The island has been unpopulated for decades but in recent years some people have started to return.
Inishsirrer is a small island and a townland off the coast of Gweedore, County Donegal, Ireland.
Eighter Island is a small island and a townland off the coast of County Donegal, Ireland. The closest town on the mainland is Burtonport.
Inishcoo is a small island and a townland off the coast of County Donegal, Ireland. The closest town on the mainland is Burtonport.
Inishkeel is a small tidal island and a townland off the coast of County Donegal, Ireland. The closest village on the mainland is Narin.
Media related to Owey Island at Wikimedia Commons
